One of the most difficult things there is has got to be trying to lead a healthy life in this day and age. No matter what you do, there is always something that represents a health risk and could compromise your well being. Sometimes, this has to do with your own practices, like lack of exercise and smoking.
Other times, it is out of your control, and you might be suffering from a hereditary disease that runs in your family. Unfortunately, diabetes can be both. It might result from your lifestyle choices, and it can be passed on to you from one or more of your parents –– though it doesn’t have to.
The problem is, diabetes is one of the most difficult conditions for the person to live with. Although it has no cure, you can still manage the disease and its symptoms. This is something that you will need to learn to do, and it starts by understanding lancets and their importance for diabetic patients.
What Are Lancets?
Blood testing has always been a very annoying part of the diabetic person’s experience with the disease. Over the years, new solutions have emerged to make things simpler and less painful for patients, namely, lancets. Those are small needles that are sharp and can be used to prick the skin. They allow you to quickly obtain a blood sample, which you will then use to test blood glucose levels to understand where your body is at.
You can use a blood glucose monitor device to get an idea about the glucose levels in your blood, which will help you better manage the conditions and act appropriately if there are spikes or anything. A lot of the lancets now available can be used with something called a lancing device to help make the process less painful for the patients, while also making it more efficient.
But you don’t need to use one, and you can just use a needle to prick your skin and get a blood sample. So, what exactly are the different uses of lancets for diabetic patients?
Getting Blood Glucose Levels from Other Parts of the Body
While a lot of people use an average needle to prick their fingers for a blood sample, some don’t. You can use devices that come with varying depth options so you could get a blood sample from your palms or forearms. This ability to adjust the depth of the lancing device is crucial as it helps you get the needed blood sample with the least amount of pain. The touch of the device is gentle and you can then safely dispose of the lancet after you are done.
Allergies Testing
A diabetic person is subject to a lot of other health complications, and there are certain foods that you have to eat and others that you need to avoid. This is why it helps if you know what kind of allergies you might be suffering from, so you could adjust your diets and medication plans accordingly. You can use lancets for this particular purpose as well.
They are used to prick the skin with a minimal amount of the allergen that needs testing, which will trigger a controlled allergic response and help your doctors find out if you are allergic to this substance or not. Lancets are used frequently for this purpose, especially with patients who might have some anxiety about such testing.
Pre-Loaded Lancets for Glucose Levels
As we mentioned earlier, one of the most important uses of lancets for a diabetic patient is to determine glucose levels in the blood. Lancet developers at PipLancets have created a type of easy-to-use device that is compatible with most glucose meters. The process is also both safe and painless, which is why a lot of people like using this particular type.
Another advantage to using those lancets is the fact that the needle is concealed, which helps a lot of people get over their anxiety and fear of needles –– a medical condition known as Trypanophobia. Pip lancets come in different sizes, each able to prick the skin to a certain depth. Last but not least, this type of lancets helps avoid accidental pricks, which is very important for ensuring patient safety and avoiding health complications.
Testing Children
Nobody likes lancets, least of all children. This is why one of the most important uses for lancets is testing kids who will probably be scared out of their wits if you took out a fingerstick to get a blood sample. A lancet also hurts a lot less, so you can approach them in the future to do the same process without them freaking out.
This will help you keep track of your diabetic child’s condition, and you will be able to regularly monitor their blood glucose levels without any complications. You can even teach your children to use them because they are pretty easy to handle. More importantly, as we mentioned earlier, as the lancet’s needle is concealed, there is no risk for the child hurting themselves, and it is much safer to use this device.
Don’t Reuse the Lancet
This is a very important point that you have to keep in mind. Lancets, in general, are made to be used once and then disposed of. When the needle of the lancet pierces your skin, it becomes dull. The more you use it, the duller it will become. This means if you tried using it again, the process will be more painful, and you might actually end up hurting yourself by using a dull needle.
It doesn’t matter if you are using it to test for allergies or get blood glucose readings. You should also know that lancet needles often have a lubricant of sorts to make the pricking process less painful.
When you use it once, that lubricant is used up, so any other attempts will be painful. If you reused your lancet, there is also a bigger chance of infection since it might have bacteria or some of your blood might linger on the needle, causing infection if you use it again. Remember that the needle is concealed on a lancet, so cleaning it is not as easy as you would think.
This is why, once you use the lancet, you should dispose of it and get a new one when you need to redo the test. All that being said, people still reuse lancets because getting a new one every time might be time-consuming, not to mention costly. So, you should consult with your doctor if that would be a wise thing to do, and if so, understand what the maximum number of times that you can use a lancet for is.
Never Share a Lancet
It goes without saying that you should never share a lancet with another person, even if they were a family member. Doing so puts you and the other person at the risk of contracting any of the bloodborne viruses and pathogens that could easily transfer if you use it after somebody or vice versa.
From HIV to Hepatitis B and C, there are many diseases that can be transferred by people sharing needles, and you don’t really want to be exposed to any of those as they can often be fatal. So, always remember that you should never use a lancet that has been used by someone else, and they should never use the one used by you.
Sterilize
While much less painful and easier to operate, a lancing device is basically a needle, and it will come in contact with your blood. This is why it is important that you sterilize and disinfect properly before using one. We will get to the steps of using one of these devices shortly, but you should follow the same disinfection procedures as you would with a normal needle. Clean both the device and your hands, and disinfect before pricking the skin.
Dispose of The Lancet Safely
You can’t just dispose of a lancet like you would a soda can. You have to dispose of it safely because this thing has a needle with your blood on it, which means any person might come in contact with it if you are not conscious about how you do dispose of the lancet. This will help others and maybe even you or your family avoid the risks of bloodborne pathogens that could be easily transmitted if you are not careful.
You can safely dispose of the lancet by putting it in a sealed container, which will make it hard for a person to come in contact with the device. You don’t need to get rid of each lancet in a separate container. You can just collect them in one, and when it is full, dispose of the container altogether.
How to Use a Lancet
Whether you want to use a lancet and a lancing device for determining your blood glucose levels or to test for allergies, there are certain steps that you should always follow to make sure the process goes as smoothly as possible without any complications.
- Wash Your Hands and Prepare the Lancing Device
The first step that you need to do is wash your hands, and this is not exactly optional. There are always bacteria on your hands, and the last thing you want is for any of those to find their way into your bloodstream. So, always wash them using soap and make sure you do it thoroughly. Then, you need to prepare the lancing device by inserting a new lancet, but don’t remove its safety cap just yet. Insert the lancet slowly and without twisting it so you don’t break it off.
- Take the Sample
You should then expose the lancet needle by removing the safety cap, and be careful not to poke yourself while you are doing that so you don’t have to insert a new lancet. Some lancing devices have varying depths that you can choose from, and you need to choose one depending on your skin and how sensitive it is. Don’t choose maximum depth if you have sensitive skin, so you could avoid a painful experience.
This will take a few times trying to find the perfect depth for you, but you should always start with the milder depths and make your way into the deeper ones. After settling on that, you can then prick your fingertip and get the blood sample.
- Put It in the Glucometer
If you want your blood glucose level readings, you will then need to add the blood sample to a glucometer. But before doing that, make sure you have a big enough sample so that the device wouldn’t give you an error or an incorrect reading. After puncturing the skin, squeeze your finger a little bit to get enough blood for the strip, so you wouldn’t waste any and redo the process.
Then, clean the puncture wound and disinfect it with some alcohol and an absorbent fabric like cotton. After that, get rid of the lancet safely as explained above, and you can get to the glucometer to work on the reading and take any needed actions after that.
There are many types of lacing devices and lancets in the market, and you will need some time to find one that works best for you. This part includes a lot of trial and error, but it is certainly worth it. You will be able to get blood samples at home, painlessly and without any complications.
You need to read the instructions on the lancing device carefully before using it, because different ones might have additional instructions or a different way of doing things, and you need to know that. Whether you are using it for glucose levels or allergy testing, a lancet and lancing device can help you get the results you need at home with as little effort as possible, and they can make a diabetic patient’s life much easier.